Franz Marszalek was a German conductor and composer, noted primarily for his performances of operettas and light music. Following his early studies in Breslau, he was in demand as a cinema and theater conductor and arranger. He was the conductor of the Cologne Radio Orchestra from 1949 to 1965, and he also made recordings with the Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra. His discography offered complete recordings of Johann Strauss II's The Gypsy Baron and Carnival in Rome, and The Land of Smiles and Paganini by Franz Léhar.